Friday, May 29, 2015

Dr Catherine Itsiopoulos on the health benefits of legumes, plus a recipe from 'The Mediterranean Diet'

Legumes represent a major protein source in Mediterranean
diets, particularly during religious fasting periods where vegan diets are
followed.(1) Common legumes in the
Mediterranean diet include lentils, cannellini beans, lupins, peas and peanuts.
Fassoulada, a traditional Greek tomato based soup with cannellini beans is
considered the national dish of Greece.

The “Food Habits in Later Life” (FHILL) study was a
prospective cohort study of 785 elderly people from long living populations in
Japan, Sweden, Greece and Australia and demonstrated that Australian Greek
migrants had a greatest longevity compared with other cohorts and this was
attributed to their greater adherence to a traditional Mediterranean diet.(2) When individual components of
diet were examined legume consumption was associated with an 8% reduction in
mortality for every 20g increase in legume intake. No other individual foods
were found to be significant in predicting survival.

In addition, an exhaustive review of pooled/ meta-analyses
and systematic reviews examining the association between food groups and
diet-related chronic diseases published between 1950 to 2013 showed that plant
foods are more effective than animal foods in preventing obesity, type 2
diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer.(4) Interestingly, within the
plant food groups, grains (including wholegrain cereals, nuts, seeds and
legumes) were more protective than fruits and vegetables. Among animal foods higher
intakes of dairy was found to be neutral while higher intakes of red/ and
processed meats were associated with increased risk. The authors concluded that
the findings of this extensive review support the recommendations for a
Mediterranean diet, that being to encourage consumption of vegetables, legumes,
fruits and nuts, cereal, and fish, and moderate consumption of meat, poultry,
and dairy foods.

Observational studies from the USA, Japan and China have
previously shown that legume consumption, specifically soy, has been associated
with protection from coronary heart disease.(5-7)

The health benefits of legumes are most likely due to the
wide range of nutrients and bioactive compounds found in them. Legumes, are high in protein,
fibre, low GI carbohydrate and a rich source of minerals such as iron, zinc,
calcium and folate. Legumes are also rich in the isoflavones with potential
oestrogen-like and anti-oxidant properties.

Legumes are the richest source of protein amongst the plant
foods and combining legumes with grains provides a good complement of proteins
as legumes are low in methionine which grains contain.

White Bean Soup (Fassoulada)
recipe from The Mediterranean Diet

Serves 6

Ingredients:

·3 litres water

·2 ½ cups (500 g) white cannellini beans (dried
or canned)

·2 brown onions, finely chopped

·2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

·3-4 stalks celery, thinly sliced

·2 cups (500 g) pureed tomato

·½ cup extra virgin olive oil

·3 carrots, diced

·1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf
parsley

·Freshly milled sea salt, to taste

·Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

·Chilli flakes, to serve

·Crusty bread, to serve.

Method:

If using dried beans, place them in a large pot, cover with
cold water and ice cubes and leave to soak overnight (or during the day while
you are at work). The ice helps soften the beans and prevents skins from
separating during boiling, giving a thicker, creamier soup.

Put water in a 5-litre heavy-based stockpot, add beans,
onions, garlic, celery, tomato and olive oil and bring to a boil over high
heat.

Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes

Add carrot and parsley and simmer for another 30 minutes.

Add seasoning and chilli flakes to taste then serve with
sliced crusty bread.

Leftover soup can be frozen and easily defrosted in
microwave when ready to eat.

About the author

Associate Professor Catherine Itsiopoulos is the founding
Head of Dietetics and Human Nutrition at La Trobe University. Her
academic, clinical research, health service management and dietetics career
spans 30 years and she is recognised for her expertise in studies using the
Mediterranean diet in the treatment of diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and
fatty liver. Catherine has published widely in the scientific literature and
has recently published her first book titled ‘The Mediterranean Diet’ (Pan
MacMillan, 2013), in which she reviews recent evidence on the health benefits
of the Mediterranean diet and includes traditional recipes.